Days 201 and 202… 9th and 10th October
Cabbage and spaghetti from the breakfast buffet along with sweet fennel bread. I am certainly eating some strange but wonderful food on this trip. 5 hour drive to Kagoma located on Lake Tanganyika which separates Tanzania from the Democratic Republic of Congo on the other side. More road diversions in place, some single track in part with road construction teams working in earnest. The sections of newly completed road were a dream with no other vehicles using them. Plenty of tuk-tuks, motorbikes, and cycles in the larger towns. Visited a mechanic to assess the humming noise from Greta. Another encounter with a police officer but this time the mechanic test driving Greta was speeding. Our hotel ‘Leaders Lodge’ had friendly staff and delicious food. Tonight’s dinner was vegetable curry, rice, cucumber and banana. Met fellow guests in the evening on the terrace (an American working over here and a Dublin based couple overlanding in East Africa). Visted the Livingstone museum and monument. Fascinating tour guide and exhibition of local historic artefacts. Very hot day. Chilled back at the hotel on the terrace with cold drinks.
Allen’s perspective…
Driving to Kagoma was even more fun, with a lot of dirt diversion roads off to one side, but alas all of the bouncing up and down made Rachael feel a bit car sick for the first hour.
I was super chuffed to have finally visited the Dr Livingstone Memorial Museum in Ujiji. This was the point where the American and explorer Henry Stanley found David Livingstone by the shores of the lake. Michael Palin had visited this same monument on his Pole to Pole trip in 1992, and our guide Kasim met and fondly remembered him. The museum itself was small, but definitely worth the trip.
Many people recommended we also pay a visit to the old German ship MV Liemba, but given it has not run for several years and is rusting away in Kigoma’s port we both felt we could give that a miss. Plus, it gets SSSOOO hot during the day all we wanted to do was to take a rest.
